The "Proving Ground" is a 40-mile race from Port Townsend to Victoria, British Columbia, and acts as a qualifier.
In 2018, SEVENTY48, a human-powered-only on-water race was introduced, with racers sprinting from Tacoma, Washington to Port Townsend.
Several days are spent in Victoria to give the racers the opportunity to correct any problems found or made during the first leg, and from there the race continues on to Ketchikan.
Race updates and team write-ups are styled to be humorous rather than professional, and often make reference to the racers themselves as being overly devoted or unintelligent for being willing to participate.
An example of this is the Small Craft Advisor Magazine's offer of $1,000 and a place on the front cover to the first boat under 20' in length to complete the race.